Can I be an ILP volunteer if I'm Canadian? Yup! There are a few things that are different though, so let's fill you in.
We totally get why you're wanting to spend time abroad as a volunteer. Teaching the cutest little kids, while living in a new culture, and traveling on the weekends and vacation days to experience iconic spots you've only seen in pictures?! What could be better?! ILP is based out of the US (Utah to be exact) and many of our volunteers are US citizens, so we get this question a lot — but yes, we do also work with Canadian volunteers!
Still wondering if this kind of experience would be a good fit for you?
Learn More About International Language Programs
Okay so now that you know ILP accepts Canadian volunteers, and you'll want to com your application — get started right here. It's pretty easy to get your application going, since you can do everything online and over the phone!
There's a few things that are a bit different for our Canadian friends, so let's go over the most common questions we get so that you can get back to dreaming about your vacations and those yummy treats on your semester abroad.
One thing you'll want to know is that visa requirements may limit your options a bit. Some countries require that visitors obtain a visa to enter the country, and each country looks a bit different (because each country individually decides what those requirements are).
There may be times where the visa rules make it so that we cannot send Canadians to a particular ILP Country.
I know, that can be disappointing news if you've already got your heart set on one of those spots. But the good news is that it's more rare that this is the case and the majority of our locations are open to Canadians! ILP has volunteer programs in a bunch of really amazing countries with both Exchange and Humanitarian programs that are an option for you! Get a list of all of our countries, here.
Psst: Not sure what the difference is between Exchange and Humanitarian and want to now which is a better fit for you? Read this post!
ILP holds a 1-day, in-person training in Utah prior to each semester. We've got a lot to fill you in on including things like how to teach a class using our specific teaching methodology, tips for staying safe while you travel, good things to know about how to respect your new country's culture, and more. We usually schedule 2-3 training sessions (and you only need to attend one of them) that occur over the 3-4 months leading up to departure time. That way you have a couple of date options to make it work a bit easier with your schedule.
While we do have volunteers who fly in from all over the US and Canada to attend that training session, we understand if it just isn't realistic for you. In that case we do have an online training option that you could do instead. Head's up, there is a $100 fee to do online training (while our in-person training is free).
On top of that, we know that you'll also have questions when you're abroad and actually diving into teaching and service. Because of that, we've got a system set up for your Head Teacher to continue training and give support throughout your semester.
Pretty much! You can fly from any international airport, and that includes Canadian ones. We'll ask you which airports work best for you and then do our best to find a flight deal from that spot. Keep in mind that your flight will be roundtrip to and from the same airport, so you can't fly out of one and then go come home via a different one.
You can "meet" your group online before you leave, but we don't see many volunteers (even ones who live in the same state) who make plans to meet up before departure day, so even if you live further away you're probably not missing out on anything.
About 6 weeks before departure, we'll send you a list of everyone who's in your group and you can start following each other on Instagram or start a group text going. Also, volunteers usually get to meet at least a few members of their group when they attend the live training in Utah.
Aside from all that, you'll get to meet everyone on departure day. Because we're based out of Utah, we have a lot of volunteers who fly out of Salt Lake City, so those volunteers are typically on the same flight. But when we have volunteers who've chosen to fly out of any other airport, we take a look at the flight routes and try to line things up as best as we can.
At times you might get lucky and meet up with some of your group members on a layover somewhere and then fly the rest of the way together. Otherwise you'll meet up with everyone at the destination airport. Either way, we'll make sure there's someone in country who's picking up your entire group at the airport, so you won't have to figure out how to get around your country on your own the first day.
Glad you asked, we've actually got a money saving tip for you! When you make payments to ILP for things like your program fee, or if you want to snag one of the favorite ILP sweatshirts that everyone gets, etc. it's good to know that our payment system accepts payments from US banks without any fees. If you're paying from a Canadian bank account though, they add a 3% surcharge fee on top of your payment.
We wanted to help you save on those fees though, so we started wondering ... how easy would it be for you to set up a US bank account while you're in Canada? Is that even possible? Turns out yes — it's totally easy and doing so could save you at least $100+. So if you'd rather use that money for something like a safari experience in Uganda, then you'll want to listen up.
After researching lots of options, we wrote up a blog post on how to open a US bank account while you're in Canada, highlighting a few of the ones that look the best for our volunteers. Hope that helps!
Does volunteering abroad sound like something you want to do?
Then by all means, let's help you get started on the application! And don't worry, one of our reps (who has volunteered with ILP themselves) will help you with the entire process and answer any questions you have. Adventure awaits!